Becel targets moms with renewed healthy heart message

Unilever’s Becel brand is again taking its message of women’s heart health to the airwaves with a new campaign. The new integrated campaign from DDB Toronto (with media duties handled by Mindshare) encourages mothers to take care of themselves the same dedicated way they take care of their children. In a digital spot that can […]

Carly Lewis
January 24, 2013

Unilever’s Becel brand is again taking its message of women’s heart health to the airwaves with a new campaign.

The new integrated campaign from DDB Toronto (with media duties handled by Mindshare) encourages mothers to take care of themselves the same dedicated way they take care of their children. In a digital spot that can be seen online, a group of kids tell their moms that they don’t have to stay up all night working on homemade Halloween costumes or school science projects, and that they should take some time for themselves.

Visitors to the campaign’s microsite can personalize the video and email it to friends. Margaret McKellar, senior marketing manager of Spreads Canada, said “we know that women are more likely to start taking care of themselves if they’re encouraged to do so by loved ones.”

In a statement, McKellar said “Becel wants to drive home the relevance of heart disease and stroke with women and provide them with the tools necessary to make positive changes in their lives.”

For an accompanying TV spot that launched Jan. 21, moms were invited to a real-life elementary school event where their kids surprised them by reading individual letters thanking them for all that they do. “The real surprise for them was the letters from their children,” said McKellar by phone. “It was really important for us to make sure that we captured those real candid moments and that raw emotion.”

McKellar said mothers tend to put family health ahead of their own. “This is a leading risk factor for women,” she said, “but it’s within our power to control. It’s about waking women up.”

Unilever collaborated with The Heart and Stroke Foundation to create the campaign.

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